Rumors About iPhone 5, Mini iPad May Be True: Analyst

Apple's latest guidance released in its earnings reportlast weekmay lend credence to some recent rumors about the iPhone and iPad.

A Monday report from the blog iMore spurred speculation about when new Apple products would be unveiled.

Apple will announce a new iPhone and iPad mini on Sept. 12, and the iPhone will be released shortly after on Sept. 21, according to iMore.

Apple refused to comment on the matter, but Toni Sacconaghi, a senior research analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein, said that Apple's most recent guidance released supports the notion that new products will be introduced this quarter.

"One thing that was curious about Apple's earnings last week is they gave guidance that was uncharacteristically aggressive, and one of the key questions that many investors had was what's the missing link?" Sacconaghi said on CNBC's "Fast Money." "Reports this morning are suggesting there could be one or more (products) which would help tie and close the gap between what seems to be pretty aggressive guidance for this quarter."

While the reported September dates for new products may be accurate, he said, there is no way to know for certain if Apple will unveil an iPad mini or a new iPhone. But if Apple wants to make investors happy, they better announce at least one of them, he said.

"If we don't see either an iPad mini or an iPhone 5 this quarter then I think Apple will miss it's revenue guidance for this quarter," Sacconaghi said.

Another report surfaced Sunday that also spurred rumors about what the new iPhone may look like.

Photos of the presumed next iPhone were published on a Japanese website callediLab;the blog 9To5Mac, which covers Apple closely, quickly re-postedthe pictures.

The images show an assembled iPhone that features a smaller dock connector, a change in the iPhone design that was reported earlier this month.

While every new version of the iPhone has some design and technology modifications, investors are worried about the iPhone 5 because they aren't sure consumers are ready for some of the key changes.

"There's a lot anxiety about the iPhone 5 and its timing, in part because Apple is going to be pushing the envelope on some technologies," Sacconaghi said.

Among the expected changes to the iPhone 5 is a much thinner display screen, which isn't widely commercial yet, so it's not clear how consumers will like it, he said.

"I think if anything, investors are saying 'Look, they just missed numbers.' If anything, it feels like the iPhone 5 could be pushed out a little bit because they are pushing the edge a little bit with some technologies," he said.

Although Sacconaghi said he thinks Apple will miss its fourth quarter earnings if it doesn't introduce new products, he still has a $750 price target for Apple's stock because the company's fundamentals remain strong.

"If we think beyond the near-term, ... is Apple in fast growing end-markets like smartphone and tablets? Yes, yes. Do they have competitor products? Yes, yes. Do we continue to expect that Apple will continue to delight its users? Yes," Sacconaghi said. "And given the stock continues to remain inexpensively valued at current levels, we continue to like it here."